William McMillan
- June 6, 2000
- 71 years
About William McMillan
William McMillan, 71, World-class American sport shooter and Olympic champion (1952, 1960, 1964, 1968, 1972, 1976).
Explore other notable deaths in 2000 or deaths in June 2000.
The Deaths Archive presents
How well do you know William McMillan?
Explore their life. Test your knowledge. Beat the challenge.
10 questions · One legacy · How much do you really know?
Challenge your friends
Play together in real-time.
Advertisement
Full Biography
|William Willard McMillan (January 29, 1929 – June 6, 2000) was an American sport shooter. Competing in ISSF 25 meter rapid fire pistol, he won an Olympic gold medal in 1960, was part of the American winning team at the 1952 World Championships, and won several gold and silver medals at the Pan American Games between 1955 and 1979.
Biography
McMillan was born in Frostburg, Maryland. He attended Turtle Creek High School in Pennsylvania. His professional career began in the United States Marine Corps, with McMillan eventually reaching the rank of lieutenant colonel. After his retirement, he served as sheriff in San Diego County, California. He died in Encinitas, California, on June 6, 2000.
Sport shooting
Between 1952 and 1976, he competed in the 25 m rapid fire pistol event in six Olympics, missing only the 1956 Games due to malfunctioning of his weapon during the US trials. He won a gold medal at the 1960 Summer Olympics in Rome and competed at five other Olympic Games.
McMillan won one world, five Pan American, and four national titles in the rapid fire pistol and free pistol events, as well as several silver medals at all these competitions, the last two aged 50. In his career, he set two world shooting records.
In 1994, USA Shooting inducted him into the USA Shooting Hall of Fame.
Military service
McMillan enlisted in the United States Marine Corps in 1946. He was commissioned a second lieutenant in 1953 and retired as a lieutenant colonel in 1974. He served in the Korean and Vietnam wars.[citation needed]
From 1974 to 1981, he worked as a Weapons Training Coordinator at San Diego County, California, where he was injured in a shooting accident at the old Camp Elliot range.
In 1978, the Marine Corps established the McMillan Trophy for sports shooting in his honor.
Military awards
- Distinguished Pistol Shot, June 16, 1950
- Distinguished Marksman, June 3, 1954
- Distinguished International Shooter, May 23, 1963
Content from Wikipedia — licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0
Interactive
Test Your Knowledge – Trivia Challenge
How well do you know this person's life and legacy?
No account needed to play. Sign in to keep your score on the leaderboard.
Books & Media
Find books, audiobooks and films about William McMillan on Amazon.

As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.
Amazon and the Amazon logo are trademarks of Amazon.com, Inc. or its affiliates.
Sources
- Wikipedia
- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/William_McMillan_(sport_shooter)
- CC BY-SA 4.0
- Sep 26, 2026
- View article
- Sep 26, 2026
People who died on June 6
Spotted an error?
Help us keep the archive accurate. Report a correction with a source.
Report an error for William McMillan →Advertisement











